US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said President Donald Trump remains open to direct diplomacy with Iran’s leadership while stressing that Tehran will not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons.
“I serve under a President that’s willing to meet with anybody. I mean, to be frank, I’m pretty confident in saying that if the ayatollah said tomorrow he wanted to meet with President Trump, the President would meet him, not because he agrees with the ayatollah but because he thinks that’s the way you solve problems in the world, and he doesn’t view meeting someone as a concession," Rubio told Bloomberg News in an interview on Saturday.
Responding to a question about the deployment of a second US aircraft carrier to the region and whether Washington is running out of patience, Rubio outlined the administration’s two main priorities.
“Well, I’d say twofold. Number one is I think it’s pretty clear that Iran will never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon, that that poses a threat not just to the United States, to Europe, to world security, and to the region. There’s no doubt about it," Rubio said.
“The second is we obviously want to have forces in the region because Iran has shown the willingness and the capability to lash and strike out at the United States presence in the region. We have bases because of our alliances in the region, and Iran has shown in the past that they are willing to attack us and/or threaten our bases. So we have to have sufficient firepower in the region to ensure that they don’t make a mistake and come after us and trigger something larger," he added.
Rubio emphasized that Trump’s preference remains a diplomatic resolution, even as military preparations continue.
“Beyond that, the President has said that his preference is to reach a deal with Iran. That’s very hard to do, but he’s going to try. And that’s what we’re trying to do right now, and Steve Witkoff and Jared have some meetings lined up fairly soon. We’ll see if we can make any progress," Rubio said.
“The President would always prefer to end problems with a deal. He would always prefer that, so we’re going to give it a chance here again and see if it works," he added.
Two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Reuters news agency on the weekend that the American military is building up forces and preparing for a potential multi-week campaign should Trump decide to launch strikes against Iran.
One official said that in an extended operation, US forces could target not only Iran’s nuclear facilities but also state and security institutions. The official did not specify which sites might be struck, but noted that Washington anticipates retaliation from Tehran, potentially leading to an ongoing cycle of attacks and counterattacks.
On Friday, senior officials in the Trump administration told the New York Times that Trump has not yet decided whether he would strike Iran.
Three US officials told the newspaper that the options Trump has been weighing include military action targeting Iran’s nuclear program and ability to launch ballistic missiles.
The President is also considering options that would include sending American commandos to go after certain Iranian military targets, the officials said.